Science and Faith
by Hannah Tennant-Cumberbatch
Summary: "You might look different, sound different, even walk different… But you're still the Doctor. You still save lives. And you still mean the world to me."


**A/N: After watching Doomsday again, I've recently became a very big Rose/Ten shipper. So without further ado, please read my selection of Rose/Ten one-shots! They're mostly set within episodes, and the Script sort of inspired a few lines of this. Enjoy! x**

**Disclaimer: Don't own. Man.**

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The midnight air was bitterly cool despite the night sky above being completely cloudless. The moon was bright and full; casting beams and pools of light across the vicinity of the Powell Estate, highlighting the piles of snowy white ash that now coated all the pavements and the tarmac.

The golden rushes of debris from the destroyed Sycorax ship had now come to an almost indefinite standstill: occasionally a small comet would flash by, but there weren't as many as Rose had seen previously. Rose knew that those glowing streaks signified the horrific destruction of the alien ship, but she couldn't help but contemplate how beautiful everything had looked.

The Doctor had encouraged Rose to sleep for a few hours- seeing as she couldn't remember how much sleep she'd had in the past couple of days. Between caring for the Time Lord, worrying about whether he still wanted her around anymore, diverting a potential alien invasion and trying to defend herself on a very hostile spaceship, Rose had never really thought for one second about sleeping. But after aimlessly lying in bed for an hour or two and looking out her window at the Doctor by himself, Rose couldn't bear it any longer. She jumped off her mattress and threw on some clothes, before rushing down the stairs and venturing outside.

"I thought I'd told you to get some rest." the Doctor said, he hearing Rose before she came into vision.

Rose shivered, but it wasn't because of the cold. His voice sounded so different, so new. "Since when have I actually done as you've said, Doctor?"

The Doctor smiled thoughtfully as Rose jumped up on the wall next to him. "That's a very good point."

Rose smiled back at him, her eyes assessing his face as she did so. Everything about him that she knew had gone… But, for some reason, the fact that he could completely change didn't scare her anymore. "But where would we be if I always did as you said?"

The Doctor grinned before pinching his cheeks and sticking his tongue out at the blonde girl. "I wouldn't have this ugly face for a start. I'd still be Northern and have those sticky out ears."

Rose laughed. He definitley still had the ability to make her laugh uncontrollably, one trait that hadn't changed from his previous self. She quickly diverted her eyes away from the Doctor's idiotic facial expression. "Trust me; losing the ears isn't such a bad thing. I quite like your new look."

"Seriously?" the Doctor said, his voice lifting up at the end of his word. "Even though I'm not ginger?"

The Doctor's sentence made Rose laugh even more. "Yeah. Even though you're not ginger."

"What's so funny about being ginger, Rose Tyler?" the Doctor questioned, not sensing the funny side that Rose seemed to be getting. "I love a ginger! There are lots of brilliant gingers out there. Liz II, the one-hundred-and-ninety-ninth president of the United States, Ron Weasley… I'd love to join the ginger clan!"

Rose shook her head as her laughs subsided. "You're so different. You really, really are. Everything about you has just… Well, it's _changed. _Not just your appearance. Your personality too."

The Doctor hesitated before answering, sucking in a huge breath. "That's what regeneration does, Rose." the Doctor broke of his sentence, running a hand through his now chocolate brown hair. "Everything has its downfalls. That just happens to be regeneration's- I dodge death, but it has severe after effects. I'm not who I used to be, Rose. Not anymore."

Rose reached out her hand and gripped the ancient Time Lord's in hers. "You might look different, sound different, even walk different… But you're still the Doctor. You still save lives. And you still mean the world to me."

The Doctor dragged his eyes away from the night sky down to Rose, squeezing her hand tighter.

The Doctor and Rose Tyler. Rose Tyler and the Doctor. Even though he knew it wasn't going to stay like this forever, it didn't stop him from wishing it could. Rose Tyler; the girl who stuck by him no matter what, the girl who would never take no for an answer. The only person he would ever risk his life with.

"You were brilliant today, Rose." the Doctor said, "Absolutely brilliant. As always."

Rose half-smiled as the Doctor withdrew his hand from underneath hers. "How would you know, idiot? You were asleep for most of it!"

"Well," the Doctor pondered, "The human race had been forced into avoidable slavery when I woke up. And trust me, Rose, without me around, that usually happens. Well. I say usually. Probably not usually. But a lot more than it should." he shuddered. "If it wasn't for you, who knows what Harriet Jones could've done. Blimey, she's changed. I really liked her at Downing Street, and now she's some trigger happy maniac! And what was that Torch-something big laser-y thing about, eh? How exactly did that come about? Because that big laser-y thing definitley did not come from Earth."

Rose rolled her eyes and smiled. She'd have to prepare for this Doctor being a rambler. "You weren't so bad today yourself. Once you'd woken up."

The Doctor grinned, looking proud of himself. "Yeah? Did you like the whole dramatic entrance thing? Well. The pyjamas kind of spoiled the initial momentum, but that sword fight pretty much made up for it. Beware, Rose. This regeneration is rather handy with a sword." he wriggled the hand which had grown back after it had been severed in the duel.

Rose slapped him on the arm mockingly. "That was such a bad joke."

The Doctor suddenly went very serious. "Oh, please don't tell me that I'm going to be the type that tells really bad jokes. No."

Rose smiled. "At least today ended well. Sort of. Mum was so happy that you could stay for dinner- she always makes enough for hundreds at Christmas."

"You're telling me!" the Doctor exclaimed, his eyes widening. "The more I ate, the more food was piling on top of my plate."

Rose waved her hand dismissively. "Whenever we have visitors, mum has the overwhelming need to feed everybody way more than they should really eat." she paused. "Doctor, I know the comets and stuff were because of that ship… But it really was beautiful. In a weird way, it kind of completed the day for me."

The Doctor looked down at his lap. "It was ash, Rose. Ash of a spaceship filled with aliens that needlessly died. How can that be beautiful?"

"There was nothing we could've done about that, Doctor." Rose said. "I know it's horrible, but it happened. But… Needless to say, it was _incredible. _You don't need to put everything down to science, Doctor. You can just stand back and appreciate it."

The Doctor half-smiled. "Most things come down to science in the end. Somehow."

Rose glanced up at the sky and pressed her hands together. "You can't find faith or hope down a telescope."

The Doctor snapped his eyes back round to look at Rose. Seeing the hope in her eyes, the Doctor removed his sonic screwdriver from his pocket.

"Watch this," he murmured, pointing the screwdriver at the sky and pressing.

Rose looked up and gasped.

Snow, proper snow, was falling from the sky. Proper, solid flakes. Beautiful flakes.

She shook her head, not quite believing what she was seeing. The Doctor never ceased to amaze her. Ever. "You're magic."

The Doctor laughed. "More of a minor atmospheric disturbance, but I can live with magic."


End file.
